Genesis 20:17

Old Testament Law (Torah) ASV (1901)

What does Genesis 20:17 say?

The American Standard Version records this verse as: “And Abraham prayed unto God. And God healed Abimelech, and his wife, and his maid-servants. And they bare children.” Read the surrounding verses and the named sources below before drawing broader conclusions.

The verse

And Abraham prayed unto God. And God healed Abimelech, and his wife, and his maid-servants. And they bare children.
Genesis 20:17 — American Standard Version

Context — Genesis 20

American Standard Version (1901) — public domain. Click any verse for its study page.
17And Abraham prayed unto God. And God healed Abimelech, and his wife, and his maid-servants. And they bare children.

What do historical commentaries say?

John Gill's Exposition
John Gill (1697–1771) · Exposition of the Old and New Testament · 18th-century historical commentary
“So Abraham prayed unto God, etc.] As the Lord had told Abimelech be would, (<012007>Genesis 20:7); he might pray for the forgiveness of him and his wife, and might give thanks that Sarah had been restored to him; but chiefly it was on account of Abimelech and his family: and God healed Abimelech, and his wife, and his maidservants: who by reason of some disease were rendered unfit for and incapable of cohabitation with their husbands, and they with them; but upon Abraham’s prayer for them, who was heard, they were healed, and the disorder removed; the Targum of Jonathan is, “his wife and concubines;” and they bare [children]; cohabited and conceived, and bare and brought forth children, all…”
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Barnes' Notes
Albert Barnes (1798–1870) · Notes on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“- Abraham in Gerar 2. אבימלך .2 'ǎbı̂ymelek, Abimelekh, “father of the king.” 7. נביא nābı̂y' “prophet,” he who speaks by God, of God, and to God, who declares to people not merely things future, but also things past and present, that are not obvious to the sense or the reason; related: “flow, go forth.” 13. התעוּ hı̂t‛û is plural in punctuation, agreeing grammatically with אלהים 'ĕlohı̂ym. ו(w), however, may be regarded as the third radical, and the verb may thus really be singular. 16. נכהת nokachat an unusual form, either for נכחת nokaḥat the second person singular feminine perfect or נכחה nokeḥâh the third person singular feminine perfect, from a verb signifying in hiphil, “make…”
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Tyndale Open Study Notes
Tyndale House Publishers · Tyndale Open Study Notes · Modern study notes
“20:17-18 The infertility suggests that some time had passed. God controls births; he opens and closes wombs (25:21; 29:31; 30:2, 17, 22-23; 1 Sam 1:19-20; Pss 113:9; 127:3; Luke 1:13).”
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Related study paths

Sources and verification